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Massive surf, massive!!
What a day. The forecasted swell hit hard on the north shore of Maui. Many pictures all over Internet from Honolua, Jaws, and other spots not maxing out.
Full circus on Peahi/Jaws with more paddle-in surfers than ever; yes this seems to be what every body goes for now, but also some windsurfers and of course tow-in surfers. To paddle in on Jaws is not an easy task. Even if it looks kind of makeable, it often is not. Today was a record in the number of prone big wave guns out there.
You want to se all of Bryan Berkowitz pictures from todays Jaws:
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.927093410455.2313976.24414448&type=3There were also some windsurfers out at Jaws, harder work than tow-in but easier than to paddle. Bart who runs the Kanaha Kai surf shop went out with the new Firelight sail from Hotsailsmaui and it seemed to work out good also at Jaws. Firelight is on of the lightest sails around (the world’s lightest 5-batten production wave sail), but it is built to cope with any kind of wave, and it seems like it sure does!
Hookipa maxed out with no use for anybody except for looking at. Kuau did more or less the same but one brave (or total idiot) soul did manage to sneak out. Among other things pressing himself over and under a 20 plus feet set!! The veteran windsurfer that has windsurfed 3 times in as many years Mike Eskimo did the impossible of windsurfing out in the channel between Mama’s and Lanes. He barely made the first wave in a giant set (20, 25 maybe 30 feet faces) but not second wave. Somehow he manage to hold on to his gear in the mast high white water and the to sail out. Once out, he turned and sailed straightaway back to the Kuau channel. No way to swim in – too much rip – but he did manage to position himself to have a major wave pushing himself all the way up on the pebble beach. ”I thought I was going to die” was his first words. Well, we all did!
I have been extremely grumpy today since my foot doesn’t really allow me to windsurf. I went down to Kanaha late afternoon, only bringing my 6.6 fish. I sat and watched the windsurfers. Lower Kanaha looked big, well over mast with dumping faces, no real left – every set closed the channel and the rights were kind of dumping too. But way out at upper Kanaha the waves looked amazing. Even if it is very far out, the speed down the line and the hard carving bottomturns and cutbacks did look unreal. This spot is only good in very specific conditions, today it looked epic; 1.5 mast (plus!) high, fast, long steep rights. The windsurfers looked to have so much fun out there!
About 4.30 pm the wind started to drop. I put some wax on my fish (twin with a small trailer, everything but a big wave board) and paddled out to the non-existing channel. I don’t know how many duck-dives and board ditches I did, but after some time I came thru. I was the only surfer out there, and pretty soon the last jet ski, the last windsurfer and the last kiter had left me all alone out there. I paddled hard on maybe 10 of the biggest set waves. The left did not exit at all (just a big gnarly close out all the way up to Weird-wave) but some right hold up somewhat – I went for the rights. Not getting in or free falling.. but then I got one. I just speeded like crazy grabbing my rail. I made it and paddled out for another one. That is I got stuck duck-diving for quite a while. I made it out three times but did not get any more set waves. I probably got a little bit tired and maybe a little bit stressed since it started to become a little dark. I settled for a smaller wave and some reforms to take me in as far as possible before the 10 minutes paddle back to shore. What a work out! 1.5 hours hard, really hard paddling for one set wave, one smaller wave and some reforms. For sure it was worth it!
Tomorrow is another day, and I will go deep into myself and ask my foot: Are you OK? Can you windsurf now? Please, please, please!?
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